ALDOT is planning on replacing two bridges that run northeast and southwest past the BJCC, through the heart of the city center. (The Birmingham News / Hal Yeager)

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama -- The city of Birmingham and Jefferson County have asked the Alabama Department of Transportation to consider rebuilding the I-20/59 bridges that run past the Birmingham-Jefferson Civic Complex from the ground up rather than replacing the bridge decks.

"We are going to look at that," ALDOT Birmingham division engineer Brian Davis said during the meeting.

That request, Davis said, raises several questions.

"Is it going to cost twice as much? Is it going to take twice as long?" Davis said, referring to the original plan to simply replace the decks and girders along the 6,600 feet of downtown interstate.

Under the original plan, which was estimated to cost $100 million, ALDOT this fall was to invite bids to replace the decks and girders but keep the original bridge columns in place.

The first year of the 2 1/2-year project would require the contractors to purchase girders. Little construction would be done in this phase.

In the next phase, likely to start in early 2014, one side of the interstate would be shut down at a time. Each side would be shut down for six months, with one side closing as the other reopened. Traffic would be diverted onto I-459 and I-65.

It would be up to the contractor to determine which side to shut down first, but ALDOT officials said they would think the contractor would choose the northbound side first. Contractors would likely work around the clock as there would be financial incentives to finish the work early and penalties for finishing late.

Roughly a dozen city streets run beneath that stretch of interstate and many would have to be closed during the construction period.

Lance Taylor, a pre-design engineer for ALDOT, said three northbound and three southbound city streets would have to remain open at all times.

And while ALDOT is accepting public comments on that plan, transportation officials are also going back to the drawing board to consider the request from the state's largest city and largest county.

"It behooves ALDOT to be willing to do that," said ALDOT director John Cooper.

The request would call for the interstate to be completely rebuilt and would accomplish four things:

Add a lane on each side of I-20/59.

Cut down on the noise from the interstate.

Provide better interstate access to and from downtown Birmingham.

Replace the parking areas beneath the bridges with walkways.

Prior to this evening's public involvement meeting, ALDOT met with Birmingham-area police and fire officials and representatives of elected Birmingham and Jefferson County officials about the project.

"At this point the project calls for just replacing the decking," said David Ricker, assistant to City Councilwoman Kim Rafferty, chairwoman of the transportation committee, who attended as her proxy. "As the project stands right now, nothing will really change. But if in the process of replacing the decking they see that the support columns need to be replaced, then they will talk about redesigning the whole thing."

Ricker called that possibility a worst-case scenario that could take five years.

Ricker said ALDOT presented new information about working with the city to remove some metered parking spaces beneath the bridge and convert it into green space.

Birmingham Police Chief A.C. Roper said, "My staff has been in several planning meetings concerning the major bridge project, and the way to success for us is through minimizing the confusion and making sure that the commuters have clear routes of passage with the proper signage."The original plan also came up at Wednesday's meeting of the BJCC board.

BJCC Executive Director Tad Snider told the board the BJCC wants assurances that the interstate repairs won't disrupt traffic to and from the BJCC, especially the new entertainment district and Westin Hotel. Both projects will open just as the roadwork begins.

ALDOT officials said today they will try and work with the BJCC. "I'm pleased that ALDOT has us involved in the project and is interested in our feedback," Snider said. "We've already given them dates of events. That project is directly above us and will impact us. But I think we can manage around the work."